Office equipment for handling large binders



Oct. 24, 1950 OFFICE EQUIPMENT FOR HANDLING LARGE BINDERS Original Filed April 1, 1946 F. S. SCHADE 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR fliA/Yk (fin/arr 027/411:

7' ATTORiEYS Oct. 24, 1950 F. S- SCHADE OFFICE EQUIPMENT FOR HANDLING LARGE BINDERS Original Filed April 1, 1946 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 I N V E NTO R Eye/w Jmmaz 750/405 ATTOR EYS Patented Oct. 24, 1950 UNITED STATES PATENT orrlca OFFICE EQUIPMENT FOR HANDLINGLARGE BINDERS .Frank Stanley Schade, Holyoke, -Mass., assignor to National .Blank Book Company, Holyoke,

Mass, a corporation of Massachusetts Substituted for application Serial No. 658,732,

April 1, 1946.

1 Claim.

This invention relates to improvements in office equipment -for-' handling large binders, books,- etc., -for example large books ofrecord as are commonly used in accounting-departments, and statistical organizations. Its purposeis to provide, simple, inexpensive ofiice equipment by which the user-canarrange to handleany hum-- ber-of large booksefiiciently. This application is asubstitute for abandoned application Serial No. 658,732. I

Apparatus will be disclosed below byway of an up tor-reading. Reversely it is closed and-swung back to the stackof the set. Various forms of book handling ofiice eq'uipment-embodya similar arrangement which is quite convenient. The trouble with the prior art so far as I know it is this. In ofiice equipment the structure is expensive particularly 'when adapted to handle many books. Also the equipment is not/flexible with respect to handling substantially less or more books than that -'iorwhich the particular equipment is designed. The *present invention provides foran improved line of equipment for the user,'-'-particularly adapted to the relation of his variable requirements. a I

The many advantages of the particular apparatus here disclosed-will be apparent from the following description especially in relationto its flexibility in handling a small or large number of binders.

In the drawingsz- Fig. 1 is a perspective view of the assembled apparatus for practicing the invention;

. Fig. 2 is.a,. fragmentary .viewrof the hand portable unit of Fig. 1 to show the hinging action and structure;

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary view to show details of construction;

"Figs. Land 5 are fragmentary views to show a modified form of construction; and

Figs. .6 and 7 are magnified views on line'66 of Fig.4 toshow steps inremoving a single binder inthe modifiedform. a i

The apparatus for handling asingle group of large books of records is shown in perspective by Fig. l with a group of three'large visible index binders, hingedl-y mounted on a hand portable platform.2. The platform has at each end vertically looped book ends 3 to support the binders This 1947, Serial No. 781,513

application October 23,

. .2 between them in stackedposition, the second book-end being against the-book at the-opposite end. 'End walls 4 of the platforml are provided with portions cutaway to form handle holds 5. The platform is mounted on wheels 6, Figs. '2

and3, the axles of which are fixed at one end in side .wall and'atthe other end in'the offset position of a bracket .8 attached to the inside of wall 1 as by rivets and onset-around the'wheel.

The platformis mounted on a rectangular'tray 9 for lengthwise movementof theplatform in the tray gu'idedbylongitudinal tracks l0 provided adjacent each side wall l l of tray 9. v The tray 9 is' longer than the platformZ, its length being deter-mined by the practical aspects of the particular varied uses 'for which it may be desired. I have found that a tray from three to five times thelength of the platform is most convenient for taking advantage-of the flexibility in the use of the assembled equipment. 1 r

In use the tray is placed crosswise in frontof' I a users position at a desk-counter or other working surface. It is'set far enough b ack of the users position'to permit the swinging of any-book directly onto his working surface for making en'-' tries in'the binder or for reference purposes. Platform 2' is limited in its rolling movement'on the tray in front ofthe user, by end walls -l2. Two similar hand portable platforms 2 may be set upon the same tray'or as will be described below a unit with a larger number of books may be conibinedin use with the tray.

Each binder l is pivoted on its'back panel edge to the edgeof the'long-itudinal platform sidewall Lby-the'hinge construction shown. The binders,

as indicated in Fig. 1, are mounted with the reading matterupsidedown. Hinge plates M are fastened as by rivetsl 5"t0 the back'panel of each binder. In the exampleshown, with a slight curvature to fit the curved back panel ofthebinder.v The plate is also offset,'Fig. 2

to permit the edge of the binder back to nest snugly in the plate for reenforcement. In use the binder isswung on its hinge in a arc to lie substantially horizontal, Fig. 2 on a working surface, not shown, and'opened in positionwith the printed matter right side up for reading' The plate ld-has spaced portions 1 6 rolled at the ends in cylindrical form. Portions It are mated with similar spaced portions ll of a hinge plate l8 attached to side wall 1-. Two pintles l9 are threaded one from each end of plate l8 through the mating cylindrical portions I6 and ,l'! 'to form the hingep'intle means of the construction.

By this construction, see Fig. 3, any one of thebinders can be removed without chance disarrangement of the mating parts of another. A handle 20, Fig. 2, atthe outer end of each pintle Wis for'withdrawing'its pintle out of engagement with the cylindrical portions. When the pintles plate i4 is formed are inserted the handles are removably snapped into a slot 2| cut in the surface of platform 2. The removal of one pintle l9 allows removal of the book adjacent the end of that pintle, the other pintle keeping the central binder hinge parts in hinged alignment. Partial removal of both pintles permits removal of the middle binder with no displacement of hinge parts on the end binders.

The assembly of the hand portable binder set on platform 2 on the tray 9 shown as an example of the invention, is adapted for the handling of many large books in separate units of three binders each. On a tray proportioned to the platform as shown in the drawing of Fig. 1, a second platform with three binders, may be added, thus making a total of sixbinders in the assembly. Each one of the binders may be moved crosswise of the working surface at one side of the tray and centered in front of the user, pulled down on its hinge, and opened for inspection without doing more than slide the platform unit lengthwise of the tray for opening it in the position most convenient for the user. The other binders are conveniently out of the way, readily available and at the users fingertips. No special type of working surface is required. The tray may be placed on any flat surface where the work in connection with the binders is to be done. The hand portable set may be picked up by its handles, or the book ends if preferred, and placed in a storage "vault or book shelf with hundreds of similiar portable units. When several persons are using more or less frequently the same or similar sets of records contained in the books, a tray can be provided on the working surface of each user at several different locations. The ready adaptability of the apparatus for the different requirements of any individual business ofiice will be appreciated from the flexible character of the assembled combination as office equipment. The handling of this class of large books will be facilitated by the comparatively inexpensive apparatus as shown. And the efficiency of large business organizations will be increased by its use In Figs. 4 through 7 I have shown a modified form of hinge structure which is used with a portable set containing more thanthree binders. Thehinge in either form of binder could of course be pivoted by one pintle pin. However, for the convenient removal of any one binder from the set I provide means to do this without the difficulty of rethreading the-pin with other hinge elements out of alignment. In the larger sets separate pintles [9' for each of the individual binders are held in the half cylindrical portions [1' of hinge bar l8. A slide 22 is held on bar l8 in bayonet slots 23 by pegs 24 attached to bar 18'. The upper edge 25 of slide 22 retains the pintles in hinging relation. A single binder is removed by shifting the slide by a finger piece 26 at each end of slide 22 from the position shown by Figs. 4 and 6 to a lower position in the slots 24 as in Figs. and '7. The binder is then swung outwardly on its corner edge, lowered and its individual pintle I 9' withdrawn from the hinging structure. The other binders seated on the platform 2 hold their pintles IS in the portions [1.

The combination of the tray and portable set of books, shown in the examples of the disclosure, is a definite contribution in the art of'oflice equipment by virtue of its flexibility in handling the large heavy books as stated. The saving over prior types of ofiice equipment now known to me is found not only in the initial and maintenance costs of the equipment itself but more directly in operational conveniences as compared to other operating movements with the prior art book handling apparatus.

Having disclosed my invention, I claim:

In office equipment for books, the combination of several large binders, each binder having an offset hinge plate construction along a corner edge at the back with an outer portion thereof overlying the back portion and an inner hinge portion providing a pivotal axis spaced from said corner edge inwardly of the binder, a platform having depending longitudinal side walls and wheels carried thereby inwardly of said walls and under the platform, book ends, one along each;

end edge of the platform to removably position the-binders on the platform, a hinge construc-,

tion on one longitudinal side wall of the platform and providing a pivotal axis along said side wall,

means to removablymate said hinge construction of the binders to said hinge construction of the platform and providing a pivot for each binder on a side wall of the platform to hingedly bind the books and platform for any book stacked between the book ends to be swung out to be opened, individually 7 closed, and returned to stacked position, the assembly of the aforesaid parts formed in one hand portable unit of binders, stacked between book ends, supported, and hinged to one side of the wheeled platform, such unit" being formed for a hand transport between a point of storage and a point of. use, a cooperating assembly of a tray longer than said platform and having upstanding side and end edges,

lengthwise tracks on said tray to removably receive and guide the platform wheels for lengthwise movements on the tray and cross wise movement of a book users position at a desk or table top working surface, said tracksbeing open and accessible from above to permit theplatform to be lifted vertically on and off the tracks, the tray being adapted for positioning crosswise in front of such users position and back of his working surface to leave room for swinging out a binder from the platform, the aforesaid parts forming the hand portable unit of binders and the said tray construction being adapted for a system in which a user may have any number of binders stored, arranged in hand portable sets, each set between book ends, stacked on a small wheeled platform, hinged to the platform, and placed when desired for use on said tray with tracks for the users convenient use when desired at his Working space as stated.

FRANK STANLEY SCI-IADE.

. REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

. .UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,277,544 Carre Sept. 3, 1918 1,715,233 Haskin; May 28, 1929 1,795,698 Auerbach" Mar. 10, 1931 1,815,304 r Krag July 21, 1931 1,931,785 Wright Oct. 24, 1933 -FOREIGN PATENTS v,

Number Q ,Country I l Date 

